U.S. patent number 4,926,961 [Application Number 07/226,146] was granted by the patent office on 1990-05-22 for hinged acoustical voice tube.
This patent grant is currently assigned to ACS Communications. Invention is credited to Shu-Ren Chen, Phillip Gattey.
United States Patent |
4,926,961 |
Gattey , et al. |
May 22, 1990 |
**Please see images for:
( Certificate of Correction ) ** |
Hinged acoustical voice tube
Abstract
An acoustical voice tube, comprising an acoustical hollow upper
piece and an acoustical hollow lower piece in hinged connection
permits voice or sound tube positioning over a large area without
changing the sound characteristics.
Inventors: |
Gattey; Phillip (Los Gatos,
CA), Chen; Shu-Ren (Santa Cruz, CA) |
Assignee: |
ACS Communications (Scotts
Valley, CA)
|
Family
ID: |
22847751 |
Appl.
No.: |
07/226,146 |
Filed: |
July 29, 1988 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
181/22; 181/18;
181/20 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G10K
11/22 (20130101); H04M 1/05 (20130101); H04R
1/08 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
G10K
11/22 (20060101); G10K 11/00 (20060101); H04M
1/05 (20060101); H04R 1/08 (20060101); H04M
1/04 (20060101); G10K 011/00 () |
Field of
Search: |
;181/18,20-22,126,131,137,138 ;379/430 ;285/233 |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Foreign Patent Documents
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|
|
|
|
|
|
1296902 |
|
Jun 1969 |
|
DE |
|
7596 |
|
1915 |
|
GB |
|
Primary Examiner: Fuller; B. R.
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Limbach, Limbach & Sutton
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. An acoustical voice tube for use with communications equipment,
comprising:
a hollow, acoustical upper piece having an upper end for detachable
coupling with the communications equipment and a lower end with at
least one convex protrusion;
a hollow, acoustical lower piece having a lower end adapted for
receiving sound and an upper end having at least one bore aligned
for air-tight coupling with said convex protrusion of said lower
end of said upper piece and thereby creating a hinged connection
between said upper piece and said lower piece.
2. An acoustical voice tube as in claim 1 wherein the hinged
connection between upper piece and lower piece allows said lower
end of said lower piece upon received sound from a sound source to
cause said sound to remain substantially constant in the lower and
upper pieces.
3. An acoustical voice tube as in claim 1 wherein said upper end of
said upper piece is notched and rounded so as to allow for rotation
of the acoustical tube in relation to the communications
equipment.
4. An acoustical voice tube as in claim 1 wherein upper end of
lower piece has partially cylindrical side walls with a radial axis
in a perpendicular relationship to the hollow acoustical upper
piece and two bores in a parallel relationship to the radial axis,
and a lower end of said upper piece having two convex protrusions
aligned so as to fit the two bores in the partially cylindrical
side walls of the upper end of lower piece.
5. An acoustical voice tube as in claim 1 wherein the lower piece
is curved.
6. An acoustical voice tube as in claim 1 wherein the diameter of
the hollow, acoustical upper piece and the diameter of the hollow,
acoustical lower piece are less than 1/8 inch.
7. An acoustical voice tube as in claim 1 wherein the lower end of
upper piece is rounded and knuckled, and has thickened side
walls.
8. An acoustical voice tube as in claim 1 wherein the lower piece
and upper piece are constructed of a plastic material.
9. An acoustical voice tube as in claim 8 wherein the plastic
material is clear and impact resistant.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to acoustical communications headsets
and, in particular, to an adjustable, light-weight voice tube for
such a headset.
2. Discussion of the Prior Art
Prior art acoustical communication headsets incorporate an
acoustical tube or "voice tube" to carry sound to the microphone in
the housing. In all such devices, some accommodation must be made
so that the end of the tube is near the user's mouth, regardless of
differences in anatomy between users. Typically, this accommodation
involves the use of a sliding, trombone-like attachment. One such
attachment being described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,548,118 issued to
Hutchings. Other examples can be found in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,993,879,
4,090,042, and 4,118,606 issued to Larkin.
A major problem with trombone-type voice tubes is that they produce
a change in voice level when adjusted, much like the change in
sound achieved with the slide in the musical instrument. These
changes in voice level are unsuitable for oral communication,
particularly in those cases where the sound must be transmitted
over standardized equipment such as telephone lines.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION AND OBJECTS
It is a general object of the present invention to provide a
lightweight acoustical voice tube which can be used with a
communication headset.
It is another object of the present invention to provide an
acoustical voice tube which is adjustable so as to accommodate the
differences in anatomy of the voice tube user.
It is another object of the present invention to provide an
acoustical voice tube where adjustments made to accommodate the
user do not impact sound quality or sound level.
In general, the above and other objects of the invention are
achieved by an acoustical voice tube for use with communication
equipment which comprises a hollow, acoustical upper piece having
an upper end for detachable coupling with the communication
equipment and a lower end, and a lower piece having a lower end
adapted for receiving sound and an upper end adapted to accommodate
the lower end of the upper piece so as to create a hinged
connection between the upper and lower pieces.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a pictorial view illustrating an acoustical voice tube in
accordance with the present invention as it would be placed in
relation to a user of communication equipment.
FIG. 2A is an enlarged underside view illustrating the acoustical
voice tube showing the hinged connection between the upper and
lower pieces.
FIG. 2B is an enlarged side view of the acoustical voice tube
showing the hinged connection between the upper and lower pieces as
well as the sound filter.
FIG. 2C is an enlarged view of the sound filter showing the filter
screen.
FIG. 3 is the transmit frequency response template of a prior art
trombone voice tube in various positions of adjustment.
FIG. 4 is the transmit frequency response template of the present
invention in various positions of adjustment.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
Referring to FIG. 1, a user (10) is shown with an acoustical voice
tube (11) placed in proper relation to the user's mouth and ear,
for use with communication equipment (not shown). The voice tube is
comprised of a hollow upper piece (12) and a hollow lower piece
(13) in hinged connection (14). The hinged connection allows for
flexure of 40.degree. (arrows) without undue effort and yet is
tight enough to maintain a set position after adjustment.
Referring to FIGS. 2A-2C, the upper piece (12) consists of an upper
end (15) and a lower end (16). Detachable air-tight coupling and
pivotal air-tight rotation of the upper piece (12) in relation to
the communication equipment is provided by a rounded notch (17).
The lower end (16) of the upper piece (12) has two convex
protrusions (18A and 18B), thickened side walls (19) and a rounded,
knuckled tip (20).
The lower piece (13) has a lower end (21) and an upper end (22).
The lower end (21) of the lower piece (13) is adapted for receiving
sound, having an end filter (23) to serve as an acoustical
resistor. The end filter dampens acoustical resonances by virtue of
a filter screen (24) secured by a filter housing (25). The upper
end (22) of the lower piece (13) has partially cylindrical side
walls (26A and 26B) with a radial axis in a perpendicular
relationship to the hollow acoustical upper piece (12). The
cylindrical sidewalls (26A and 26B) have bores (27) in a parallel
relationship to the radial axis and aligned for air-tight coupling
with the two convex protrusions (18A and 18B) of the lower end (16)
of the upper piece (12) creating a hinged connection (14) between
the lower piece (13) and upper piece (12).
In the preferred embodiment, the length of the upper piece (12) is
less than one-third the length of the lower piece (13) and the
lower piece (13) is curved. The diameter of the hollow, acoustical
upper piece (12) and the diameter of the hollow, acoustical lower
piece (13) are the same and are less than one-eight of one inch.
The lower piece (13) and upper piece (12) are made of clear, impact
resistant plastic material.
Referring now to FIG. 3, the loss of sound level upon adjusting the
position of prior art trombone type voice tubes is demonstrated on
a frequency response graph. The y axis measures the relative
response in decibels (dB) while the x axis measures the transmit
frequency in hertz (Hz). The line designated "green" is the
reference template. The line designated "black" shows the transmit
frequency response of the trombone type voice tube when it is
adjusted so that the lower tube is fully extended. The line
designated "brown" shows the transmit frequency response of the
trombone type voice tube when it is adjusted so that the lower tube
is all the way in. It is clear that the response at any particular
frequency is dependent on the adjusted position of the trombone
type voice tube.
Referring now to FIG. 4, the frequency response for the hinged
voice tube of the present invention is shown to be independent of
the adjusted position of the tube. Again, the y axis measures the
relative response in decibels (dB) and the x axis measures the
transmit frequency in hertz (Hz). The acoustical voice tube was
evaluated where the hinged connection (14) was positioned so that
the angle created by the upper piece (12) and lower piece (13) was
0.degree., 15.degree. down, and 15.degree. up. It is clear that the
response at any particular frequency is exactly the same regardless
of the adjusted position of the acoustical voice tube. Flexure of
30.degree. occurs without change in the frequency response or sound
pressure level, i.e. sound level. In combination with the pivotal
rotation of the upper piece, the acoustical hinged connection
permits voice or sound tube positioning over a large area without
changing the sound characteristics.
* * * * *